Kat nodded along at the specifications for the job. "Big question is, whatcha offerin' us to do tha job?"

Reth eyeballed the group, letting his vision slip into the astral on occasion to keep an eye on both the other group and any sign of potental eavesdroppers. He was quite willing to let the others do the talking.

"Well, Zeke. Normally, the fraggers would have been screwed. But we were just a small group, tired, low on ammo, and Jimmy had a gunshot wound in his gut. And, we were on foot. So when a group of guys on motorcycles attacked, we just ran. Jimmy, Mickey, and I managed to take out the guys who went after us, but I guess Johnny wasn't so lucky. Here's the proof of life.", he says, handing a photograph to whoever takes it. It shows a blond elf tied to a chair, wearing black tactical fatigues and sneering at the camera.

"What they're asking us for is inconsequential. We could pay it, we could pay ten times it. It's the principle of the matter. What I'm willing to offer you is twenty thousand nuyen each.", he says.

Traz's ears perked up when Weasel mentioned 20,000 nuyen.He could use that money badly.*Any idea what gang it is omae?*The nuyen offered made it a minor detail at this point,but it was pertinent information to say the least.

He stepped forward closer to the charismatic man.Although it might not be a question answered he asked anyway.*So what kind of money did they want for your friend?*He paused waiting for the man's answer.The thought of 20,000 nuyen was still lighting up the ork's face.

"Twenty Gs sounds about right for this kind of work... but it depends on what kind of work this really is. What were the colors the gangers were showin'?" Kat asks.

Stitch listens intently as Weasel prepares to describe the gang. The offer sounds good, but right now the team needs more information. He winces at Traz's blunder.

"He already said it didn't matter, Traz. Honor is at stake for them. If I had to guess, the ransom is probably less than what they're paying us."

"You would be correct...", Weasel says. Then he smiles again. "Jimmy takes a token from everyone he kills. Hey, Jimmy, let's see that ganger's jacket.", he calls to the ork. The ork grunts and tosses a brown jacket to him. Weasel holds it up, revealing an old and beaten up Crimson Sky jacket. It would have still been in decent condition if not for the fact that a large hole with charred edges was in the back, and the inside of the coat was sticky with dried blood. Weasel turns the coat around, showing the back. Some of a painted on gang symbol is visible there. Some kind of animal talon, and the letters ONS. There's also a yellow bandana tied around the left arm.

"I think they were called the Dragons, or the Talons, or something.", Weasel says, shrugging.

"If no one was on corpse detail last night, which would be unlikely, as its Redmond, there should be two mangled bodies behind an abandoned Stuffer Shack on 1st street. Their jackets'd be more telling, 'cause I had an M22, not a freakin' Panther Assault Cannon." says Mickey, racking the slide on his shotgun repeatedly, popping red shells onto the table.

Weasel pitches the jacket back, then says "The ransom note said to leave the money at some place called 'Skag's Bar'. If it's their bar, I don't know if you'd want to look there, though."

Zeke listens nodding when Weasel was finished speaking.

"So lets see if I scan what your saying correctly... You want us to extract your elven associate? OR do you want us to Locate your associate and during the retrieval SD (Search and Destroy) the gang?"

Thinking to himself that just a retrieval should be fairly easy... but SD would be a different matter.

"Oh and how do you feel about colateral damage?"

Weasel turns his head to Zeke.

"If...you save Johnny, but you don't kill the gang, that would be fine. You will tell us where they are located, though, and we will destroy them ourselves. But, if you were to annihilate the gang, we would throw in a...little extra that would make it worth your while. As for collateral damage...what do I care? It's the Barrens. The rejected of the world live there. As long as Johnny makes it out, I'm fine with whatever you do.", he says.

Kat watches the rest of the team carefully, looking for reluctance to do the job or to take it at the named price. When she sees none, she nods to the "Johnson". "Alright, sounds chill. I'm in."

Zeke turns to Traz, "Hey big man what you say we clean out some gangers?" "And while we are at it catch a payday?"

Smiling he looks at Weasel. "I'm in"

Traz responds to Zeke with a smile covering his face."Sounds like it's time to turn those gutterpunks into chalk outlines.Count me in."

"I'm in," says Stitch, hiding his lack of enthusiasm with his normal nonchalance. No way he can really turn down the job - snagging one of Brass's buddies from the clutches of a scuzzy street gang is cool and all. He hopes it doesn't turn into a big bloodbath, though. Maybe he can keep the others from going completely kill-crazy. Personally, he would rather sneak in, nab the hostage, and mark the location for their employers, but it's not looking like it'll go down that way.

Weasel smiles again.

"Excellent. Now that it's all in order. I have one last...caveat. Don't get me wrong. I like all of you..." His smile fades and his face darkens. "But...if Johnny dies...you will all be killed.", he finishes. Mickey racks the slide on his shotgun, as if to emphasize the point.

"However...there's probably no chance of that. You are, after all...professionals."

Weasel's smile comes back, and he motions you towards the elevator.

"What if he's already dead?" Mech asks. "They might not want to kill him until they are absolutely sure they have no use for him, but he could very well have tried and failed to escape, and been shot in the process."

Weasel's words washed over Traz with little effect.If Weasel's threat was intended to intimidate him.it had failed.If he had 10 nuyen for every time someone claimed they would kill him,he wouldn't be in this stench filled basement.He would be enjoying retirement on a sandy beach somewhere,sunning himself as he sipped on frosty lime margaritas.For now he pushed the thoughts of retirement out of his head,and back to the merc filled basement.

Mech's question was a very good one.If the elf was dead they would not only be out the nuyen,but possibly have to go up against this merc team.It wouldn't be unbelievable if the gang had killed him either.As they moved toward the elevator his attention was focused on Weasel's answer.

"If Johnny is already dead, well...then...I don't know. I guess you'll have to prove you didn't do it, somehow.", Weasel says, shrugging.

Reth smiles slightly at Weasel's last words. He wasn't going to open his mouth and make any suggestions, after all.

Kat nods. If the guy was already geeked, this run was a big risk. The payoff might well be worth it, however. She eyed the other team, appraisingly, trying to decide if the risk outweighed the reward.

"I'll tell you what if he's already dead, you won't see me coming..."

"Now that all the testosterone has been thrown around, I think I'm ready to leave."

Zeke turns toward the elevator praying that there would be no bloodshed.

Traz turned and spoke to Weasel ."When did you receive the picture of your friend?"Although he disliked Weasel more with each passing minute his need for the nuyen outweighed his personal feelings.If a short time had passed since the proof of life was offered the run could be more palatable to the team.

"We got the photo around noon. I'm sure he's still alive.", Weasel says.

Traz nods looking satisfied with Weasel's answer.He steps on to the elevator and waits for the others.

Stitch frowns thoughtfully as he gets back in the elevator with the others. He doesn't like being threatened, but maybe the threat will cool down his teammates a bit, so they will want to sneak in and get the elf more than they will want to go in guns blazing.

Kat gets her info and dissiminites it to the group. When that's done, she gathers up her stuff and heads down to the target bar with the rest of the team.

"The leader's a troll named Big Guzz and he's got a physad sidekick," she relates.

Stitch bustles around his apartment, laying out his equipment while nibbling on the rest of that pasta, also checking his messages and setting his telecom to record a medical documentary that he will have to watch later. Truth be told, he has plenty of time, and no need for this hectic multi-tasking. But the addrenaline rush of a new job is coursing through him. Thankfully, he has settled down (a bit) by the time he has gathered his gear and met with the others.

"Big... Guzz. I see. It seems to be the night for unique street names. Well, as soon as our astral guy gets through scouting, it'll be time to hit the place, silent as ghosts. Um, unless they're not there, I mean."

Reth slips into the astral once he's arrived at the bar. He checks around the building then slides in through the ceiling to give the place a once over.

Mech stays in his Pimpmobile parked out front. "Keep in mind that if we start a fight here, now, they are certain to guess why. Don't get violent unless we know he's here." He sets up The Terminator, his custom walker drone, in the trunk of the van, then jacks back into the van and his remote control deck and brings the walker on standby as a drone while he jumps into the van and scans his van's passive sensor feed.

Cleaver stays in the Pimpmobile with Mech and prepares to move if anyone calls for backup.

Skag's Bar and Grill is a hole. There's simply no other way to describe it. From the stapled on sheets of plastic over the broken windows, to the peeling sign hanging by a single nail, reading 'Skag's Bar and Grill' You can't help but wonder what the hell is grilled in there. Maybe devil rats. A streaked and rusted sheet metal door provides entrance.

Reth sits down in the back of the Pimpmobile, and enters the coma-like state that shows he's gona astral.

Around the back of the building is a couple guys wearing yellow bandanas on the arms of their leather jackets. They're chatting idly. And inside the building are men with the same colors, sitting around drinking. One of them, much taller than the rest, with the mohawk of metal spikes, is talking.

"...once that drek-head with the gasmask brings the codes over, we can get our money from those suits. And then we can buy those rocket launchers, and not even the Edgers could mess with us!"

Theres grunts of agreement from the others at the table.

The sensors on the van spot nothing.

Reth continues to scan the place astrally.

Kat checks and rechecks her Colt Cobra from the seat of her Honda 3220. When Reth gave them some info, she would get to go in blazing or not, depending on what he found out.

Crouching low in the alley across the street Zeke watches the building patiently, his duffle bag sitting slightly unzipped in his lap. His friend Traz close by his side brings back memories of a different time... a time when half his unit died due to bad intel. Shivering Zeke shakes his head hoping Traz didn't notice and mistake it for fear...

Cleaver scans the building for any sign of roof access, windows, or ventilation ducts more than ten centimeters wide. He also takes note of how crowded the street and the area right in front of the bar are, and how many people could see a person apprach from the van to the bar.

Having finished his scan, Reth pops back into his body and gives a detailed report. He includes all doors and windows in his explanation.

Stitch rubs his chin thoughtfully. "So... our target isn't there, and it looks like some drek we weren't told about is going on. Obviously, we need more information. Do we want to try and nab one of them to interrogate, or go in acting like we have the codes? Either way, we're going to have to hit them fast, so they can't contact their chummers or the suits they're working for."

"I think a snatch would be good, but assaulting the place is out of the question, and I doubt we can fool them into thinking we are friendlies," Mech says. Let's try and kidnap those two out back."

Reth settles in to listen. He'd chime in if he had anything to add.

"Reth, do you have any stealthy spells?" Cleaver asks. "Invisibility, disguise, silence, anything like that?"

Stitch glances over at Reth, then turns to Cleaver. "I don't know about Reth, but I know an invisibility spell, as well as a single-target stunning spell."

"Invisibility, yes."

"Alright, two mages with invisibility spells, that's great," Mech says. "Stitch, you turn yourself invisible. Reth, you turn yourself and Cleaver invisible. The three of you sneak over to the gangers, take them out with magic and silenced pistols with gel rounds, then turn them invisible as well and carry them back here."

Stitch sits down and converses with the other two members of the strike team in a low voice. He proposes that he take out the one on the left side from approaching the back, while Reth and Cleaver nab the one on the right. Since there doesn't seem to be any magical opposition, Reth and Stitch can keep track of each other's position by using astral perception. Stitch will stunbolt his ganger while invisible, while Cleaver shoots his target. Then after Cleaver grabs his ganger, Reth can turn the ganger invisible too, while Stitch will turn his invisible, then levitate him along.

"Of course, the biggest downside to this is that both of us spellslingers will have to sling a lot of mojo... casting a spell while you already have one going is tough, and so is keeping several going at once. Let's just take it slow, cast carefully, and get the job done. We still need to be able to function later, but getting information is our priority right now."

The plan being agreed on, invisible Reth and Stitch closely follow an invisible Cleaver. The two gangers around the back are still talking and drinking with each other.

Despite the trio's inability to see each other, the plan goes well. Cleaver puts two rounds into a ganger's chest, Stitch's stunbolts knock the second onto his ass, and the levitating off goes without a hitch.

A plan well done.

The air seems to shimmer slightly as Stitch reappears in the alley, his eyes glowing with the almost feral luminescense of his shamanic mask. He then concentrates, looking at what appears to be an empty spot of air, when one of the gangers appears, floating in midair. He carefully lowers the ganger to the ground, then wearily sits down against the wall, taking some deep breaths before looking up with a shaky grin.

"Not the easiest spellslinging I've ever done, but it got the job done. Once these guys wake up, we can see what's really going on here. Might want to keep a bit of an eye out for the rest of them at the bar, though. When they find out their lookouts are missing, we don't want them panicking and doing anything rash."

Kat watches and waits for the interrogation to be completed.

"Drag them into the van and let's go someplace out of the way," Mech says.

Cleaver tosses the prisoner he is carrying in the back, gets in, closes the door, and starts tying the punk up.

The prisoners wake up relatively fast. First the bound one, then the one that Stitch captured. The tied one, with blue spiked hair and a tire track tattoo on his face comes to groggily, then noticing the armed and hostile faces thrashes about a bit. Realizing it's futile, he settles down and assumes an arrogant sneer.

The other one, a tall guy with skull makeup and a mohawk just kind of stares spacily.

Zeke turns to Traz crouching in the alley beside him and says " Now for the fun part... we get to wait and see if they notice their friends are missing."

Gripping his M-23 he scans his field of vision for targets.